Yevgeny Zamyatin - 'We'

'We' is the fictional diary of D-503, builder of the spacecraft INTEGRAL and citizen of Onestate. He begins the record hoping to describe the beauty and grandeur of the totalitarian society he lives in, but as the narrative progresses, his world is thrown into confusion as he falls in love with a resistance fighter named I-330.

Recognised as one of the key inspirations for George Orwell's 'Nineteen Eighty-Four', Zamyatin's novel has a somewhat strange history: after the book was banned by the Soviet censorship bureau in 1921, a rough translation appeared in England in 1924. Facing trouble at home over a book that had not been published in his own language, Zamyatin was eventually exiled to Paris in 1931, where he died in 1937. 'We' was not published in Russia until 1988.

I read this book in the Penguin Classics edition, translated by Clarence Brown. The cover artwork features Anton Brezinski's 'Painting of Futuristic Buildings and City' (above), but I also like the artwork featured on the Vintage edition (below).

Supersonic Festival 2009

I attended the Supersonic Festival in July and enjoyed sets by
Sunn O))), Remember Remember, Caribou, Head of David, Khyam Allami and Arbouretum. The highlight, however, had to be '70s/'80s Italian prog rockers Goblin (above) who played a lengthy selection from their career (including tracks from 'Profondo Rosso', 'Suspiria', 'Zombi' and 'Tenebre') and also took part in a Q&A session. They were by far the best dressed band.

Brian Eno's 'Apollo' in Concert

20/07/09
Imax Cinema
London Science Museum
Arranged by Jun Lee
Performed by Icebreaker and B.J. Cole

On Monday, Brian Eno's album 'Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks' was performed live in concert for the first time. Korean composer Jun Lee arranged the work so that it could be performed by the amplified ensemble Icebreaker and pedal steel guitarist B.J. Cole.

The event took place in the London Science Museum's Imax cinema to mark the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11 landing on the moon. The music was accompanied by footage from Al Reinert's 1989 film 'For All Mankind'.

Brian Eno was present to introduce the event and was signing autographs afterwards. I was lucky enough to be able to attend and managed to record these videos:











http://www.enoshop.co.uk/
http://music.hyperreal.org/artists/brian_eno/
http://www.icebreaker.org.uk/

Shogun Assassin

Another film from 1980, 'Shogun Assassin' tells the story of Lone Wolf, a great samurai warrior whose wife is murdered by the Shogun's ninja spies. Taking his young son with him, the samurai goes on a mission to avenge his wife's death. This film was extensively sampled on GZA's 'Liquid Swords', one of my favourite hip hop albums.

Nine Inch Nails in Manchester

14/07/09
Manchester M.E.N. Arena
Wave Goodbye Tour
Support from Mew and Jane's Addiction


01. Somewhat Damaged
02. Terrible Lie
03. Heresy
04. March Of The Pigs
05. Piggy
06. Metal
07. The Becoming
08. I'm Afraid Of Americans
09. Burn
10. Gave Up
11. La Mer
12. The Fragile
13. Gone, Still
14. The Way Out Is Through
15. Wish
16. Survivalism
17. Suck
18. The Day The World Went Away
19. The Hand That Feeds
20. Head Like A Hole
21. Hurt.


Click for a larger image.

Linked videos by diluteduk. Thank you.
www.nin.com/

Radio On

I first saw this film some years ago at the Tyneside Cinema and really enjoyed it, and now some thoughtful person has uploaded the whole film to Youtube in 10 parts.
Directed by Christopher Petit and co-produced by Wim Wenders, 'Radio On' is a British road movie from 1980. The superb soundtrack features Kraftwerk, David Bowie, Robert Fripp, Devo, Wreckless Eric and more. The protagonist, Robert, drives from Camden to Bristol to investigate the death of his brother, but the film is really more about the people he meets and the things he sees on the way. 'Why [do] the English always want to live by the sea?' Robert's German friend asks. 'They always think it's going to be better than it is', he replies.

Star and Shadow Gig

On Wednesday, I went to see four bands play at the Star and Shadow Cinema in Battlefield. The bands were (in order of appearance): Onoma, Jazzfinger, Dragging An Ox Through Water (above) and Jackie-O Motherfucker. I really enjoyed Jazzfinger's drone, but the highlight of the night for me was definitely Dragging An Ox Through Water. Good show overall, enhanced by £2 pints of Wolf ale.

Blurb

I recently used Blurb.com to publish a collection of my own photographs. It turned out nicely and the quality is really very good. It wasn't cheap, but not quite as expensive as you might think.

Barry Lyndon

I hadn't seen this film before buying the Kubrick boxset, but I highly recommend it.

Svarte Greiner - 'Kappe'

Tonight I got the new album by Svarte Greiner and it's incredible. The previous album 'Knive' was a creepy and atmospheric venture into 'acoustic doom', but this album is even darker and more haunting. 'Kappe' is less fragmented: it has a more sustained, droney feel than its predecessor. Highly recommended.

Svarte Greiner - Kappe
01. Tunnel Of Love
02. Where Am I?
03. Candle Light Dinner Actress
04. Last Light.